Moscow concert hall attack live updates: At least 40 killed after gunmen open fire

Here’s what is known about the shooting so far:

-Unidentified gunmen opened fire at the Crocus City Hall in Krasnogorsk near Moscow on Friday evening during a concert of the band “Picnic”, Russian news agency TASS reported.

-The Baza news outlet, which is thought to have good contacts with Russian security services, said 18 people had died and 43 had been wounded in the attack. Authorities had not released an official death toll as of 1900 GMT.

-The Interfax news agency reported up to five gunmen were involved in the attack.

-Russian prosecutors called the attack “an act of terrorism” and have opened a criminal case.

-An eyewitness told Reuters reporters outside the venue that automatic weapons had been used.

-Video posted online by Russian news agencies showed billowing clouds of smoke and flames rising from the venue building.

-TASS reported that people remained inside the building, which is almost completely engulfed in flames and that others were trapped on the roof.

-Special units of Russia’s national guard as well as police and firefighters are on the scene, TASS said.

-Moscow’s mayor cancelled all large-scale public events over the weekend.

The Islamic State’s telegram channel says the group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Senior Russian security official and ex-president Dmitry Medvedev said the gunmen behind the mass shooting and those who masterminded it should be hunted down and killed.

Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, wrote on the Telegram messenger service: “All of them must be found and ruthlessly destroyed as terrorists.

Russian authorities say security has been tightened at Moscow‘s airports, railway stations and the capital’s sprawling subway system.

Moscow‘s mayor cancelled all mass gatherings and theatres and museums shut for the weekend.

Other Russian regions also tightened security.

The Kremlin has not blamed anyone for the attack, but some Russian politicians were quick to accuse Ukraine of being behind it.

Hours before the attack, the Russian military launched a sweeping barrage on Ukraine’s power system, crippling the country’s biggest hydroelectric plant and other energy facilities and leaving more than a million people without electricity.

Children are among those injured in the shooting and fire at the Crocus City Hall centre, Russia’s state-owned RIA news agency reported, citing Moscow’s children’s ombudsman.

Guards at the concert hall did not have guns, and some could have been killed at the start of the attack, Russian media reported.

Poland’s government has prepared new legislation to boost the nation’s capacity for self-defense, including more funding for first aid courses, better public warning systems, and more emergency shelters, officials said Friday.

Ministers of defense and of the interior said the bill was prompted by the war that neighboring Ukraine is fighting against Russia’s aggression. Russia has recently captured territory in the east, while Ukraine is running critically low on ammunition.

The number of people injured has now been estimated to be at least 100.

Russian state news agency Tass has cited Russia’s Federal Security Service as saying 40 people had been killed and more than 100 wounded.

The US embassy in Russia has told citizens to follow the advice of authorities following the shooting at a popular concert hall.

“The embassy is aware of reports of an ongoing terrorist incident at Crocus City Hall in Krasnogorsk, near Moscow,” it said in a statement.

“US citizens should avoid the area and follow instructions of local authorities.

“The US government’s ability to provide routine or emergency services to US citizens in Russia is severely limited, particularly in areas far from the US embassy in Moscow, due to Russian government limitations on travel for US embassy personnel and staffing, and the ongoing suspension of operations, including consular services, at US consulates in Russia.”

US citizens are advised against all travel to Russia.

Answering questions from viewers during our exclusive event hosted by Tim White, Shaun Pinner recounted his time being held in occupied Donetsk after being forced to surrender in Mariupol in 2022